Having enjoyed the simplified / stylised flowers I drew a couple of weeks ago, inspired by sketches by Judith Baker Montano, I’ve started attempting trees. Here’s my first one, an Aspen.

I enjoy the fine tipped pen and coloured pencil drawing but am quite slow. This took 3 evenings as it is quite exacting drawing, so I then tried something more slap-dash and fast.

I came across a sketch of The Highland Games with men tossing the caber. I changed it to The Art Games and, as I had coloured pencils all over the work table, it became Tossing the Pencil.

Yeah, I know, not great – but just a bit of fun trying to loosen my hand up a little.

Back to something more precise and the extremely talented Steve Balbi. I’ve been working on this for a while and still haven’t finished his jacket.

Obviously he doesn’t own a hair brush!!

Eyes are a challenge, and these aren’t quite right, but I like doing them – when I have the time. I’ve discovered I have no natural drawing ability, every stroke is painstaking. The course tells us just to draw, draw, draw, everything and anything we fancy, quick, slow, precise and abstract.

Testing shading on stencilled design for workshop 7

Digitised machine stitched trial for monthly challenge. There are one or two problems with the stitch density. Several areas on the right hand side of the design don’t stitch as well as the left. This is particularly noticeable in the green area, the base purple section and the black tip. Nothing I can do though as it is a purchased automated stitch programme.

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About Claire B

I'm a passionate printmaker, paper-maker and a poor sketcher (which I'm working to improve). I've stitched from early childhood and am a perpetual student, loving learning and participating in everything creative.

3 Responses to A bit of sketching

good job. deadlines/time limits are not helpful for sketching – unless its “do a 5 minute sketch”. you cant “spend 10 min with my sketchbook before I prepare dinner” not when you are at our stage anyway. the best sessions are when you just start, and before you know it, its past lunch time.

You are so right, Jane.
I get much more satisfaction toiling over a long winded, but quality, piece than 5 minute drawings where I spend 4 minutes rubbing out because it looks like rubbish. So I’ll have a slim sketchbook to send to the assessors but it should have some half decent stuff in it at least.